Closing press release THE 46TH RENCONTRES D’ARLES 6 July-20 September 2015 EXCELLENT ATTENDANCE IN 2015: 10,000 MORE VISITORS THAN IN 2014 This year, 93,000 people came to Arles for the 46
th
Rencontres, a 12% rise compared to 2014
(83,000). Over 900,000 admissions to exhibitions were tallied. The Rencontres also drew the local public. Over 7,400 Arles residents visited the festival, a 16% increase compared to 2014. Attendance was steady during opening week, 6 to 12 July, attracting 13,500 image professionals and festival-goers (more than in 2014): 40% of visitors were not only international but highly diversified as well, hailing from 40 different countries. SAM STOURDZÉ’S FIRST RENCONTRES D’ARLES WAS A SUCCESS th
Fleur Pellerin, France’s Minister of Culture and Communication, opened the 46 Rencontres d’Arles, whose new director, Sam Stourdzé, brought a fresh, unique vision to the festival: he brought photography into dialogue with music, cinema and architecture, offering the 250 artists and 39 guest curators fertile ground for experimentation. Mr. Stourdzé’s first festival met with critical acclaim in the regional, national and international press, which devoted many articles to him during opening week and throughout the summer. Popular shows receiving in-depth media coverage included the Stephen Shore retrospective; Total Records, The Great Adventure of Album Cover Photography; I Was Here, Dark Tourism by Ambroise Tézenas; The Heavens, Annual Report by Paolo Woods and Gabriele Galimberti; and Personal Affairs by Thierry Bouët. BACK TO SCHOOL IN IMAGES From 7 to 19 September, the festival hosted 10,000 students accompanied by 700 teachers from throughout France. The Rencontres d’Arles education department offered over 900 workshops training participants in how to read images. Since the spring, our workshops have been available free of charge for all on our digital platform: www.latelierdesphotographes.com. THE RENCONTRES D’ARLES 2015 BUDGET €6.3 million, not including taxes: 40% from public funding